There are many instances where a circuit card or circuit board must be connected to another circuit card or circuit board in computer and related technology. One technique for making such interconnection utilizes flexible circuit for such connections. Such a technique is shown and described in commonly assigned U.S. Pat. No. 5,228,863, dated Jul. 20, 1993, and which is incorporated herein by reference. As the technology for flexible circuit cards and boards advances, the connection pads on the boards and cards are becoming smaller and smaller and more closely spaced, and thus require precise alignment with essentially uniformly-distributed pressure. Such precise alignment and uniformly-distributed pressure is especially desirable where the connection to one of the boards is to be done in a factory or manufacturing environment wherein fixturing or similar devices can be used to obtain the precise alignment to one of the boards or cards, but wherein the connection of this board or card to the other card or board is to be made in the field, and thus requires a certain amount of tolerance variation and allowance for connection.
Moreover, it has become increasingly necessary to protect the edges or ends of the flexible circuit from damage during transportation and insertion for field installation to thereby ensure a proper connection to the appropriate contacts. In the past, edge damage of the flexible circuit used in making the connection in the field has resulted in damage to the flexible circuit and consequent unsatisfactory connections being made in the field.